In our last update, we shared our recent visit with the Red Yao community and the launch of our first project for our Beautiful Reason Initiative (BRI). (If you missed it, you can get the whole scoop and learn about our exciting naturally-grown rice project right here).
Along with our mission to create all-natural highly-effective hair care products, Viori has an equally important social mission: to help the Yao community thrive. We do this by directing 5% of our profits back into their community.
This may not sound like a lot, but it goes a long way in rural China. Moreover, responsibly allocating funds back into the community is a serious responsibility -- one that requires thoughtful guidance from the community itself. It is a heart-felt effort-- and we thank you for being a part of it.
How does the Beautiful Reason Initiative Work?
As you might have guessed, an initiative like this is complex and must consider many issues and points of view. For instance --
- How can we ensure that our presence and efforts create the positive effects we intend to make?
- How can we find a balance between preserving the local culture and at the same time respecting the communities' drive to evolve and modernize?
- How can we ensure that our choices represent the community as a whole?
We care deeply about these questions and spend a considerable amount of time thinking about them both internally as a company and with the villagers during our visits.
Our role in this initiative has prompted us to define specific values to operate within. We call these are our core Corporate Social Responsibility principles. And here they are--
First and foremost, we acknowledge we are only playing a supportive role, not a directive one. Our intention is community-centered and human-centered. And above all--
Any initiative that we launch must address a specific local need rather than something we think the community needs. And just how do we uncover local needs? By asking questions and listening to the people who these decisions affect! (simple, right? 😉 )
These are the key stakeholders and decision-makers for the Beautiful Reason Initiative…
And because many of our dedicated fans are kind enough to offer their unique insights and perspectives on our social mission, we consider and share those too (thank you ❤️ ).
Information from these three sources helps us make well-informed decisions that benefit the community as a whole.
Secondly, projects must also align with our company values and areas of concern.
Viori's values play an essential role in the project selection process, too. We only invest in projects that aim to bring about: ecological harmony, economic prosperity, cultural preservation, and social well-being. Every project proposal is evaluated on this basis. If a project might bring harm to one of these areas, we decline to participate.
And lastly, we subscribe to this guiding principle:
"If you give a hungry man a fish, you feed him for a day, but if you teach him how to fish, you feed him for a lifetime."
-Lao Tzu
Directing funds into projects that support the community in retaining self-sufficiency is important to us. For local projects, that means investing in education and providing valuable workshops and training.
As you can see, we've put a lot of thought into this initiative (we're a pretty passionate bunch!), and we are thrilled about the launch of our first BRI project. We hope you'll stay tuned for additional updates! Questions? Comments? Ideas? Let us know!